


Rising Sun

by Princess0611



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Breaking Dawn Fix it Fic, F/M, all canon pairings - Freeform, what should have happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:46:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24591766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Princess0611/pseuds/Princess0611
Summary: I think we can all agree that Breaking Dawn kind of sucked. Here's how it should have gone down.
Relationships: Alice Cullen/Jasper Hale, Carlisle Cullen/Esme Cullen, Edward Cullen/Bella Swan, Emmett Cullen/Rosalie Hale
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

“Dad. There’s something I need to tell you.”

I had just graduated from Forks High School last month. My dad knew things were serious between me and Edward, but he had no idea what was coming. I felt bad, but I couldn’t put it off any longer. I had been distancing myself from Charlie lately, scared to get too close right before I had to leave forever. I never intended to stay in Forks for long, but little did I know that I would never be coming back. At least not in this lifetime. I let him see the boxes in my room so that he knew I was moving out, but he thought I was preparing for college. Until recently, it was the plan to tell him that I was going to school, but it wouldn’t explain why I could never see him again. Why I wouldn’t come home for the holidays, or in the summer. I had decided that it was better if he knew as much of the truth as possible. I couldn’t lie anymore. 

Right on cue, Carlisle pulled into the driveway, the shiny black Mercedes standing out against the bleak street behind him and my own beat up pick up truck. We had agreed that it was better if Charlie heard this from Carlisle, rather than Edward. 

“Yeah, Bells? What is it?” Charlie said, barely looking up from the game on TV.

“Actually. Carlisle just pulled up. There’s something we both need to talk to you about.” That came out sounding too formal. He knew something big was up. I swallowed the lump in my throat as he turned off the TV. I opened the door for Carlisle, the star of our little town. 

“Hi Dr. Cullen. What’s going on here?” Charlie crossed his arms defensively. My mind flashed back to Edward picking me up for that awful baseball game. My eyes flicked towards the gun and I stifled a giggle. It’s a good thing he’s bulletproof.

“Carlisle, please. I wanted to talk to you, face to face. Bella has obviously been spending a lot of time with my family, and it’s time you know the truth.” He gestured towards the dining table. “Let’s talk.” 

Charlie huffed. This was not going to be pretty. 

“I want to start by apologizing, because I cannot tell you everything. I want you to know that I will tell you as much as I can, but giving you too much information will put your life at risk.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Charlie demanded.

Here we go. I inched my chair closer to Carlisle. Come on, get this over with.

As always, my favorite vampire doctor was cool, calm and collected as he explained. “You’ve probably noticed my family are not like other people. We tend to keep to ourselves. It’s important that other people don’t notice how different they are. We have our own system of government, if you will. The law states that once you find out the truth about us, the choice is either to become one of us, or die.”

Charlie, ever eager to get to the bottom of this. “So what are you? I’ve noticed you guys act different, like something out of an old movie. And you all look… so… “ Gruff Charlie trailed off. Beautiful? Magical? Mystical? I mentally supplied him the words that were normally not in his vocabulary. 

“I can’t tell you that! I just told you what would happen if I do. I won’t put your life at risk. I also never intended to let Bella find out what we are, but she figured it out on her own. And she literally wouldn’t stay away from us, we couldn’t hide the truth from her for long.” He smiled at me. I tried not to blush. Charlie was silent. Trying to put the pieces together. 

Carlisle continued. “Since Bella knows, she has chosen to join us in this life, and I have gladly welcomed her into our family.” He held up a hand to stop Charlie’s outburst.

“Bella will be joining us, she is the missing piece of our family, there’s no other way. I know she told you she was leaving for college soon, but the truth is that she is coming with us. This lifestyle forces us to move around frequently so people don’t figure out the truth. The longer we stay in one place, the more noticeable we become.” 

“And I assume this means you’re never coming back.” Something inside me told me that Charlie already knew some of this. Edward and Alice had both come around often enough, not bothering to pretend to be human enough. They had been subtly hinting at it all year. They were smarter than I gave them credit for. 

“So. You’re a doctor.” Charlie’s mind appeared to have taken a turn.

“... Yes.” Carlisle seemed as confused as I was.

“You have the highest tenured position and the highest salary and supposed years of medical experience. And you look like this.” Click. 

Carlisle grinned. “You see why we have to move around? We wouldn’t want people asking questions like that, now would we? But yes, I will tell you that I am licensed and experienced, I know what I’m doing. Don’t worry about that.” 

My dad was at a loss for words. He wasn’t angry. He wasn’t interrogative like a police chief should be. There was sadness, but there was also calm. And then I felt it too. A wave of peaceful energy rushed through me. I looked inquisitively at Carlisle, and he nodded slightly. Jasper was nearby. 

“Charlie. I know this isn’t easy for you, but trust me I will take care of your daughter as if she is my own. We’re a very close knit family, and she will want for nothing. I promise you this.”

Several long goodbyes and hugs and tears later, and we were ready to leave. Carlisle carried my remaining possessions out to his car, and Charlie pulled me aside one last time. 

“Promise me you’re going to be okay?” He said sternly. Charlie wasn’t going to let me see him cry. 

“I promise. Carlisle and Esme are the absolute best. I want this, it’s okay. I’ve been looking forward to the next chapter of my life for a long time now. I wish it didn’t have to be this way. I love you.” One last goodbye, and I turned to walk towards the fancy black car, and didn’t look back. 

***  
Carlisle and I were in the car alone, the rest of the family was already at our new home outside of Vancouver. I was grateful for some quality time with him. Although I trusted him implicitly, I never really got to know him personally. He had always seemed a little too formal, a little too perfect. What was he like when he didn’t have to hide? 

The answer, it seemed, was full of humor and personality. He joked about what my favorite kind of animal will be, and how I’ll be spending my free time once I’m not in school and no longer need sleep. 

“Emmett promised to teach me how to kill a bear.” I paused. “What is it like to hunt? How did you figure it out? When you were alone.”

Carlisle tilted his head thoughtfully. “It will come as second nature to you. When you open your eyes for the first time in this life, the need will be so strong, that your instincts will take over. We will keep you away from humans.” I nodded. 

One thing that all Cullens had in common, apparently, was a love for driving way too fast. Out of nowhere, the engine roared to life, the wheels barely touching the pavement on the open roads. Carlisle laughed at my reaction, white knuckled and eyes wide. “You haven’t gotten used to that yet with Edward?” 

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.” My heart pounded. “Charlie is the chief of police, you know.”

“Trust me, Bella. We never get caught.” His eyes sparkled. “Which reminds me. You’ll need a car after you’re changed. What would you like? Maserati? Bentley?”

“What - No, I don’t want -”

“Ah, not your taste? A Ferrari, then? Maybe a Lamborghini?” He grinned like he had something up his sleeve.

“Oh my god - No - I could never accept -” I stuttered.

“Bella. I’ve been one of the best doctors in the world for going on three centuries. I have a daughter who has never been wrong about what’s going to happen in the stock market. Anything you want, it’s yours. Seriously. Oh, and you’ll need this.”

He handed me a manila folder full of forged documents. I saw a driver’s license and a passport with doctored photos of me with pale skin and golden eyes. The name Bella Cullen looked up at me. Then I pulled out a shiny black credit card with my name on it. This was going to take some getting used to.

“You’re a Cullen now, Bella. Anything in the world you could ever ask for.” I guess I had never realized it, but I knew that the Cullens had houses like this in remote locations all over the world. The endless supply of sports cars, designer clothes, jewelry, expensive hobbies, and rooms full of valuable collectibles. Carlisle never blinked once.


	2. Chapter 2

At first, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. We stayed at home for the most part, while we got acclimated to the new city. Carlisle was hired right away at the best hospital in the area. The new home had seemingly endless land that stretched for miles before running into the city. Esme and Rosalie set up a beautiful garden with flowers that I had never seen before. Alice and I spent plenty of time shopping. She insisted on me getting a whole new wardrobe. Apparently nothing I already owned was up to her standards. At home, I had never been happier. Edward and I spent every day together, exploring the wilderness, talking about the endless forever we had in front of us. 

After we had been in Vancouver for a few weeks, Edward and I found a beautiful meadow, not unlike the one we shared back in Forks. The soft blue and purple flowers bloomed in the sun as we lay in the grass, and I admired his diamond skin. 

He turned to face me. “I know I’ve already promised to spend an eternity with you. But I want to tie myself to you in every way possible.” He kissed my hand. 

My heart pounded loudly. I looked down and blushed. “Me becoming a vampire isn’t enough for you?”

He smiled and shook his head. “Isabella Swan, I promise to love you every moment of forever. Would you do the extraordinary honor of marrying me?” 

His bright golden eyes burned into my soul. In that moment, I could think of plenty of cheesy ways to respond. I thought about what Alice would say. I thought of Charlie and Renee, who would not be here to witness it. I thought of my new family and the life I left behind. There was no turning back. Instead of mentioning any of those things, I simply pressed my lips to his and whispered, “Yes.”

He pulled me up to standing and slid a beautiful diamond ring onto my finger, a bit old fashioned but still timeless, just like him. He kissed me again and pulled me in close. “Forever and ever.” He promised me. 

***  
In the days that followed, Alice was a blur of excitement and planning, against my wishes. 

“Hey, the wedding isn’t happening until after I’m changed, and after I’m not a newborn anymore. And it’s only going to be the eight of us there, don’t make it a big fuss.” I begged her.

“Oh, I won’t! But I just want to make sure the dress and the decorations and the music are all in order. And, thank you for asking me to be your maid of honor, of course I will!” She rambled.

“But I didn’t -” I started.

“But you will! And I’m so happy you thought of me!” She pecked me on the cheek as she whirled by.

“Who else would I ask?” I was bewildered. I couldn’t wait until I was at the same speed as her. I wondered what it’s like to be in her mind. 

“You know, Rose doesn’t hate you like you think she does. You could have asked her.” Alice said modestly.

I rolled my eyes. Rosalie probably wouldn’t accept me until it was too late. She insisted that I would regret giving up my humanity. But Alice probably already knew that too. 

***  
I was beginning to feel left out. I knew it wasn’t intentional, but the whole family was leaving their guard down even more than I was accustomed to. Walking and talking too fast, blurring past me, no need to seem normal. I didn’t know how they spent so much of their time, especially when I was sleeping. How did they possibly keep themselves occupied when they never have to deal with human needs? Once, Emmett even returned from a hunting trip with blood on his shirt and still dripping from his lips. “Grizzlies out here are gnarly!” He had said to me when I jumped away from him coming in the door. They had always kept that part of their life from me, understandably, I suppose, but it was the only thing that I still didn’t know what to expect. I wondered why Edward hadn’t changed me yet. We had been here almost a month now.

I curled up on the couch to watch one of my favorite movies, The Princess Bride. I imagined asking Edward to change me. As you wish, he would say. I pictured the feeling of his sharp teeth against my throat…

I was shaken from my reverie by Esme sitting down next to me. “I love this movie! Mind if I join you?” I nodded, curious if I could get some more information from her. Esme’s past was still a little of a mystery to me.

“Can I ask you something?” 

“Anything.”

I had so many questions for her. “Edward hasn’t changed me yet, and I’m not sure why. I don’t know if maybe he’s changed his mind, or he’s not ready. I don’t know if I should ask Carlisle to do it. What do you think I should do?” I rambled on.

She smiled. “Edward is trying to figure out how to tell you this. He believes he doesn’t have the strength to resist when he changes you. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but I wouldn’t hesitate to believe him. You don’t fully understand this yet, but the strength to stop… feeding… once you’ve started is -” She paused and looked at me. I thought I saw a flash of hunger in her eyes but it quickly faded. “Carlisle is the only one I would trust for that. He truly has a strength that most of us do not.”

“Okay.” Her answer didn’t surprise me. Edward must be reluctant to tell me for fear of disappointing me, but at this point, it didn’t really matter anymore. “Can I also ask you, what’s it like?” I wondered if that subject was taboo, but I needed to know. 

Esme didn’t seem to mind. “You are extraordinarily lucky that you know what is going to happen. The rest of us did not. Obviously, now I’m extremely grateful for the family I have, but I remembered how terrified I was of Carlisle before I understood what he had done to me. I knew that Emmett and Rosalie both must have felt that same fear. It’s unlike anything.” She trailed off. “But now with you, our family will be complete.” She kissed my temple. 

In that moment, I knew I was ready. As soon as I made my decision, I saw Alice and Edward lock eyes from across the room. They knew. Edward seemed relieved that he wasn’t going to have to do it, and Alice smiled and nodded encouragingly. 

As I ran up the stairs to where Carlisle was, I tripped in my haste, as if the universe was telling me that humanity was not for me. At least I wouldn’t be so clumsy anymore. Forever couldn’t wait.


	3. Chapter 3

“Come in.” Carlisle’s voice rang out before I could knock on his office door. I walked in to see him poring over the latest medical documents in fascination. 

“Um. Hi. I was wondering if you could - I don’t think Edward can - I wanted you to -” Why was this so hard? Had nobody ever asked their vampire dad to turn them into a vampire when their vampire fiancee couldn’t do it? That was a normal request, right? Luckily I didn’t have to say it out loud. 

He stood up eagerly. “I was wondering when you would ask! Of course I will.” As he stepped towards me, I could see that his eyes were darker than I expected. “Excuse me, my apologies. Can you give me some time?” 

He summoned Esme, who accompanied him in jumping out the window and disappearing into the forest. What was wrong with doors?

I sat down at his desk, my mind whirring. I thought of the life I was leaving behind. “Edward.” It was barely more than a whisper, but he appeared instantly. He kissed me, always a little too slowly, a little too cautiously. I thought about how much more he could give me afterwards. I thought about what he will be like when he doesn’t have to hold back anymore. My hands started to wander too low. He grabbed my wrist sharply. “After.” He promised me. 

We laid on the floor together. He touched my hands, my hair, he kissed my forehead, savoring a few last human moments. Today is the last day of my life. I closed my eyes and let time drift by.

“Am I interrupting anything?” Carlisle poked his head through the doorway with a smile. 

“No, we weren’t, I was just -” I stood up quickly.

Carlisle laughed. “Bella, it doesn’t matter. When you have vampire hearing, you can imagine. I’ve seen and heard it all before. And you will too.” He winked. Esme suddenly appeared behind him to punch him playfully. 

“Ready?” 

“Uhh..” Was there something I was supposed to do to get ready? Should I fall dramatically in his arms with my throat exposed? Should I brush my hair and make sure I look good? This is exactly how I’m going to look forever. Rather than vocalize any of that, I just said yes. Edward pulled me in for one last kiss, and said goodbye and told me he loved me. Always a drama queen. 

“Edward, if you don’t think you can handle this, get out of here. You don’t need to see her like this. Alice will tell you when you can come back.” Carlisle switched into doctor mode. 

The others piled into the room. Alice excitedly told me that she couldn’t wait for me to be her actual sister. Jasper waved goodbye from behind her. Emmett picked me up in his classic bear hug. “Just a few more days until we’re tearing up the forest together. Can’t wait for newborn Bella.” His eyes glinted mischievously. Rosalie stood in the corner, arms crossed, eyes sad for the life I was giving up, but I paid her no mind. This was my life, not hers.

“Alright, alright, everybody out.” Carlisle shooed them out of the same window he and Esme had jumped out of before. What was the deal with that? 

Esme stayed behind, her fingers intertwined with Carlisle’s. “You don’t have to stay, Esme.” I spoke up. “I don’t want to make things difficult for you.” I wondered what the proper protocol was here. 

“I want to be there for my newest daughter.” She said eagerly. Carlisle and I could both sense her unease with her own strength. 

“Love, please go. Trust me.” He urged her. 

She hugged me a little too tight. “Oh, you really do smell good.” She muttered. “I’m sorry.” And with that, she was gone. 

“Finally. Shall we?” He gestured for me to lay down on the bed. 

Suddenly I was scared. Absolutely terrified. I had heard from everyone in the family that this was the worst pain they had ever felt. Alice couldn’t even remember her human life before, and Rosalie resented Carlisle for changing her. And here I was, voluntarily signing up for this. There was definitely something wrong with me. Carlisle must have heard the insane pattern my heart was beating. 

“You’re alright, Bella. Don’t you trust me?” He asked. I couldn’t even speak, but I nodded. 

“You know,” he said lightheartedly. “This is the first time I’ve done this while the other person was conscious.” 

I finally found my voice. “Would you rather knock me out?”

“Um…” He considered it for a moment, glancing over at his stash of drugs. I wondered which response I was hoping for. “No. It probably won’t make much of a difference anyway. I’m pretty sure human drugs are no match for venom. I also wanted to bite you at multiple points. I think if I can get the venom into several places in your body, the change will happen faster.” 

“Yeah. Okay.” Please just do it already. I begged him silently. 

With one smooth motion, Carlisle transformed from the calm, even keeled doctor to a ravenous vampire, longing for my blood. His teeth sunk into me, setting me on fire. He pulled away slowly, as though he didn’t want to; his lips stained red. He ran his fingers along the scar where James had bit me, and he repeated the process with both of my wrists. I screamed out loud for the first time, as I fell into darkness. The world around me faded, but I could feel the venom coursing through every inch of my veins. It moved quickly, searing white hot pain into my human body. 

Once Carlisle was satisfied with his work, he laid down next to me, pressing his ice cold body into mine, attempting to provide some relief from the flames, but it didn’t help much. I lost track of time as the fire raged on, but Carlisle never left my side. He was both the devil who had done this to me, and the angel who would care for me until I woke up. 

After some time, it could have been minutes, or it could have been days, I began to become more aware of each part of me changing. The inferno creeped inward, first fading from my fingers and toes, leaving them cool and smooth. Painfully slowly, it continued on, until only my heart burned intensely, as if the fire from my entire body was now concentrated there. I felt powerful, but still unable to move until it stopped. My heart beat faster and faster until there was no distinguishing one beat from the next.

I heard screaming in the distance. I vaguely wondered if it was me. My senses sharpened. I could feel every individual fiber of the sheet beneath me. I heard the wind blowing through the trees softly. I smelled Carlisle beside me, cool and sweet, although he no longer felt cold against my skin. We were the same temperature now. 

I heard a rush of small footsteps coming up the stairs. Alice. She must have seen that the end was near. Thank goodness. I wasn’t sure how much more of this I could take. My chest still blazed and my heart showed no signs of stopping. Was that normal? 

More footsteps followed. Everybody must be home. All waiting on me. I let out another blood-curdling scream and my heart screeched to a halt. I didn’t move yet. I waited to see if anything else was going to happen to me. I felt another hand on mine. 

“Bella, sweetheart. Can you hear me? It’s all over, love. Please open your eyes.” Edward's voice sounded like music even though he was barely whispering. It was beautiful, and I felt as though I was hearing it for the first time. 

The fire in my chest instantly cooled, but a new sensation started. A dry burning feeling in my throat, like I hadn’t drank anything in days, but I knew water would do me no good. My eyes opened, and I saw the world for the first time. Carlisle, Edward, and Alice approached me first. Alice, a little too eager, and Carlisle, a little too cautious. He had gotten too accustomed to caring for me every time I was broken. 

“Edward! I love you.” My first words sounded pure and perfect. I didn’t recognize my own voice, but I liked it. 

His eyes lit up. “I love you!” He kissed me like he had never kissed me before. He didn’t hold back, didn’t worry about holding me too roughly or squeezing me too tight. I felt his strength for the first time, and it felt so good. 

“Alright, alright, get a room.” Emmett pushed past the others to get a good look at me. “Oh yeah. We’re gonna fuck stuff up together.” He put his arms up to guard as if he was boxing, and he threw a punch at me harder than he would have dared before. I punched back, as hard as I could, and he flew across the room, knocking over Carlisle’s bookshelf. 

“Oh, god, I’m so sorry, I had no idea -” Power flowed through my muscles like I had never felt before. I could get used to this.

“Not in the house! Please!” Esme yelled. I suddenly realized why she shouted at Emmett so much. “Bella, you have no idea how strong you are yet. You can do that outside!” Emmett laughed his booming laugh. I could hear it echo in the small room. I walked past the mirror and I saw myself for the first time. I mostly knew what to expect, but it was still jarring. My face mostly looked like me, just a little more perfect. The pale skin I could get used to, but the eyes… The blood red eyes of the girl in the mirror stared back at me. I knew it was coming, but if my heart could, it would have jumped out of my chest. 

“How long will my eyes look like this?” I asked the room.

“Depends how many times you screw up.” Rosalie muttered.

“Rosalie!” Carlisle chided. “Assuming, um, minimal mistakes, they should fully turn gold within a few months.”

The flames in my throat seared up again. A strange growl came up from deep inside me. Everyone recognized the sign instantly. It was time for the first hunt.


	4. Chapter 4

Edward wrapped his arms around me from behind and whispered in my ear. “Listen to me, Bella.” He spoke low and fast. “We’ll all help you every step of the way, but you have to listen to what we say. You don’t know the difference between human and animal scent. When you feel your instincts take over, make sure you know what you’re chasing before you go in for the kill.”

I barely acknowledged him, my throat growing drier and more painful by the second. 

One after another, we all jumped out of that window. Doors seemed stupid and meaningless. Even though I knew I could do it in less than a second, I couldn’t waste the time needed to go down the stairs and out the back door. My feet hit the ground smoothly, and we were off. I felt the wind in my hair as though I was driving in a convertible, and I could see every detail, every tiny bug on every tree I passed, I smelled every little critter on the ground beneath me. I was free. 

I saw my family around me, each about a football field apart, but we could all see and hear each other perfectly. Carlisle and Esme, who always put on the best human charade let loose and ran through the trees, jumping from one branch to the next, sort of like Tarzan but even more effortlessly. I was overjoyed to finally see them in their element. I could hear Emmett whooping and hollering from my left. I knew he had been waiting for this day for some time now. Even Rosalie couldn’t hate me anymore, there was no going back. I could only hope she could see how happy I was with my choice, how natural it felt. I wanted to see Jasper smile, I wanted to get to know him without him grimacing every time I got to close. And Edward. My beautiful perfect Edward. We were finally equals, he wouldn’t have to worry about me anymore. 

My moment of perfect bliss was ruined by Alice coming to a dead stop in front of me, her eyes lost in a vision. Then I smelled it. Something more delicious than I had ever eaten back in my human days. I wasn’t sure what it was, but I needed it, and be damned if anyone should get in my way. I sharply turned to run the other direction, following that sweet scent. 

“BELLA, NO! STOP!” I heard several of their voices shouting from all sides of me. I couldn’t obey them even if I wanted to. I was so hungry. 

Edward got to me first, smashing into me so hard, I fell backwards and hit my head on a tree, which subsequently came crashing down. Jasper and Emmett were right behind him. Emmett landed on top of me, holding my arms down. I fought against him, still snarling. I could still smell that glorious scent, but it was growing weaker. I had to keep moving if I was going to find it. 

“Oh no you don’t!” Emmett laughed. The muscles in his arms rippled, but I could tell he was straining against my newborn strength. He fought back. “Come on, that’s a human. You don’t want that. I’ll find you a delicious bear to eat.” He licked his lips. Edward rolled his eyes at his brother.

Esme and Rosalie ran up to us. “We cleared the way going west. There’s no humans that way.” Rosalie gestured that direction. “And plenty of bears for my monkey man.” She added flirtatiously. 

Emmett let me go and bounded after her. “Come on, love. Let’s try this again.” Edward was careful, but determined to let me do this right on my own. “Stick with the group, okay?”

I followed them, and was able to track some scents that were not as appealing as the human, but given how thirsty I was, it would have to do. 

Everything shifted. I smelled blood. It was here, and the way everyone slightly changed course at the same time, I knew they smelled it too. We found a small pack of grizzly bears chasing a pack of wolves. Plenty for everyone. 

“Make it quick, Bella. Pick one, right for the throat. Don’t let them suffer.” Edward instructed. Damn right it would be quick. The flames ravaged my throat again.

Emmett got there first, landing on the back of the largest grizzly. It instantly collapsed the moment Emmett sank his teeth in. I watched Esme and Alice catch two of the wolves. I remembered how tiny and delicate I thought Alice was the first time I saw her in school. If I had only known the truth then. Alright, I got this. I’ve seen how this works. And I wanted Emmett to see me catch a bear. 

I saw another large grizzly near Emmett’s. I jumped and lunged for it. Midair, I saw Rosalie going for the same bear as me. Her eyes were lost in the hunt, wild and ferocious. How dare she. I was the newborn here. I needed it more than her. That bear was mine. Luckily Edward came to my rescue and knocked her down, landing fifty feet from the bear with a thunderous crash as I went straight for the bear’s throat. She snarled at him, but quickly caught another one. I closed my eyes and drank. 

As I finished, I noticed Emmett was watching me. “Hey good job, little sister. You learn fast!” He smiled approvingly. With my newfound strength and my thirst subsided, I was ready to put my skills to the test. 

“Bring it on, big bro.” I waved him over. “Let’s go.” 

I looked around to see everyone’s reaction. Carlisle and Esme looked exasperated with Emmett’s antics. I wondered if wrestling was a normal part of hunting. Based on Jasper’s reaction to me getting to fight Emmett instead of him, I assumed the answer was yes. Everyone else simply backed away to give us some space. 

We ran towards each other, my first punching landing on his chest, sending him flying backwards in the distance, but he was up and back in front of me within a second, he threw a punch that I easily blocked, and then used his other arm to wrap around me and pin me to the ground. He thought he could hold me down, but I flipped us over and didn’t let him up. Jasper cheered. This went on for quite some time, neither of us growing tired. In fact, with every punch, every kick I threw, I felt like I was getting even stronger, if that was even possible.

After several minutes, Carlisle had had enough. “Alright!” He said with a laugh. “I think it’s pretty obvious you’re as even as a match as could be, until Bella’s newborn strength wears off. Let’s go home.”

“Oh yeah. You just wait until you’re not a newborn anymore, Bells. You’re going down.” Emmett threatened, right before Jasper tackled him to the ground. 

As we got back to the house, the sun was starting to set. I could feel the air getting cooler, but I didn’t feel cold. My first vampire night, and I didn’t need to sleep. “So, what do you guys do all night?” I asked. 

Alice laughed. “Whatever you want.” She said suggestively, and then she and Jasper disappeared upstairs. 

I smiled at Edward. Of course we could do that. There were endless possibilities. I could do anything I wanted. Endless time, endless choices, where could we even begin? It turns out, Edward had the same idea as Alice, and I immediately agreed. It seemed like a good enough place to start our forever.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Ch 5 contains very brief mention of attempted s*xual assault. I promise nothing graphic.

As the first few weeks passed, I began to settle into my new life. I was inexplicably happy. I was no longer stumbling through life. I had found my place in the universe. I finally belonged somewhere. Carlisle and Esme presented me with a beautiful necklace with the Cullen crest on it, similar to the ones that she, Rosalie, and Alice wore. It was perfect. “Now you’re really a Cullen.” Esme had said eagerly. 

Initially, I hunted frequently, never satisfied. I understood what they meant about being vegetarians, it was never quite enough, but I had learned to make do. I had never even seen a human since I had been changed, and I was getting restless. I wanted to explore the city. We had shopping to do. I wanted to learn my way around our new home. I felt like I had myself under control. Edward hesitated, but he knew I wasn’t going to take no for an answer. My eyes were starting to fade, but they had become a weird reddish golden color. From a distance, they could pass for brown. Alice told me not to get too close to anyone or look them in the eye. Humans wouldn’t notice such trivial things. 

For the most part, it went well. We all set out for the shopping district, breaking into smaller groups and going in and out of various shops. That was another thing I learned. When all of us were together, we stood out too much, so they reluctantly gave me some more space. I could tell they didn’t really trust me still. 

I wandered into Chanel. I remembered how much I loved their perfumes, I had gotten a bottle once for my birthday a few years back. One whiff told me that vampires don’t need perfume. It no longer had that appealing, sweet flowery scent, it just smelled like chemicals. I sighed and went on to the next store. I went into Tiffany’s, admiring everything that sparkled. I loved the way I could see every color of the rainbow bouncing from every gemstone. It was dazzling. For a split second I let myself get caught up in the beauty of one particular ring, and I didn’t notice a man behind me. He bumped into me, muttered a low “I’m sorry, ma’am,” but the damage was done. I let out a hiss and caught his scent. 

Esme ran up to me, much too quickly. “Bella, love, did you see this bracelet? This one looks perfect.” I pretended to smile and nod, but I barely could acknowledge what she was showing me. I knew the man had seen my eyes, he had seen Esme appear as if from thin air, and he had seen her grip my arm much too tightly and hold me back. She tried to cover our tracks. 

She laughed sweetly. “My apologies for my sister, sir, don’t mind us.” She flashed her perfect smile, and bright golden eyes. “Of course.” He mumbled, and hurriedly walked away. The rest of the day, there was always someone by my side. I didn’t like the feeling of needing a bodyguard, but I didn’t complain. I understood Jasper’s pain. 

***  
I found Charlie creeping into my thoughts more and more. I had been gone a few months now, and I hoped he was adjusting to his new life without me. I needed to know he didn’t miss me too much. I needed to know if Jessica and Angela missed me. I considered going all the way to Jacksonville to check on Renee. I knew the cost of choosing this life, but the thought wouldn’t leave my mind. I should know better. 

“You want to go back to Forks? Bella, it’s too dangerous. If you hurt someone you care about -” Edward didn’t have to say Charlie’s name for me to get his meaning. 

“I won’t hurt Charlie. I want to make sure he’s okay.” He understood my connection to my roots. Human lives were precious and short, and his needed to be fulfilled, even without me around. So it was decided.

We left that evening, we planned on arriving in Forks shortly after sunset. I wanted to easily sneak around at night. It had been too unusually sunny lately to take any chances. Running through the forests with Edward was so freeing. He had always been the fastest, but I was close behind. The sun broke through the clouds, illuminating the trees and the wildlife below. Our skin sparkled like diamonds, my new perfect eyesight catching every rainbow prism. Running was effortless and natural. I had never felt more inhuman, yet more at peace with the world around me. I wanted to run forever. 

It only took a few hours until we reached the outskirts of Forks, a few familiar human scents lingered. We slowed our pace as we began to explore the familiar scenery. I wanted to check on Charlie first. His scent was clearest to me, and I was able to track it easily. 

I approached my old home, and if it was possible, there would have been tears welling in my eyes. Home. There were a few cars in the driveway. Looks like Charlie had company. I cautiously peered in the window to see Charlie, Billy Black, and Sue Clearwater gathered around the dinner table. I sighed in relief. There was a sadness in his eyes, but he was not alone. Seeing him laughing with his old friends showed me that he was handling this much better than I did when… Remembering those times was like a punch in the gut, even now. It did no good to dwell on the past. 

That old memory did remind me of someone. Jacob Black. The cute boy from the reservation who really thought he could save me from my own destiny. If he could only see me now. I shared this thought with Edward. 

He smiled and shook his head. “An intriguing idea, but let’s not torture him. I’m sure he knows what’s become of you. Perhaps ignorance is bliss.” The last time I had seen Jacob was that awful night where he forced a kiss on me. I punched him his stupid face so hard that I had broken my hand. That night was the end of our friendship, and unfortunately my punch did not do any damage. It definitely would now, but it did no good to open up old wounds. Jacob Black needed to fade into my old human memories. I hoped he would eventually find happiness once he stopped chasing me. 

“Can we find Jessica and Angela next? I miss them.” Edward immediately agreed. It took me only a minute to find their scents, and it led me to our favorite old restaurant in downtown Forks. I was glad to see that they were still friends. Mike and Eric were with them too. I never really got a chance to say goodbye to them, but I was always an outsider of their little group. Hopefully they didn’t miss me too much. I had to admit I wasn’t always a great friend to them, but I would always be grateful that they accepted me on my first day at Forks High and let me sit with them at lunch. Before we got there, another scent caught my attention, and I ripped my hand away from Edward’s and ran down the alley behind the row of restaurants. I immediately found a man dragging a woman towards his car, his creeping hands attempting to stop her screams. He was as good as dead. In a flash, I grabbed the man away from her, and pulled him behind an old dumpster, where no one would see. 

“How dare you.” I hissed at him, and sunk my teeth into his throat. 

Edward, wide eyed, stared at me for only a moment, he knew I wouldn’t be able to stop now. The damage was done, so he let me be. Instead, he cautiously approached the woman. “Excuse me, miss, are you alright?” I heard him call out. I heard a soft, shaky voice respond. “Y-Yes. Did- did you see which way he-?”

“Yes, he’s gone. Don’t worry, he won’t bother you again. Please go home. You’re safe.” Edward reassured her. Her quick footsteps disappeared into the darkness. 

Once the man was drained, I came back to my senses, his lifeless body stared up at me. “Oh, god, oh god. Edward. What do I do?” I panicked. 

He tried to calm me down. “I’ll help you bury the body in the forest, nobody will find it. We’ll get out of here.”

He didn’t understand what I meant. Human blood was so much sweeter than any animal I tasted. I wanted more, and we were surrounded by such easy targets. Edward’s eyes locked on mine as he caught my train of thought. In a flash, Edward picked me up and ran. We stopped only for a moment to quickly hide the man’s body, and then we disappeared into the depths of the forest. I held my breath the entire time. 

Once we were sure that there wasn’t another human for miles, we stopped running. “Edward, what are we going to do? I killed somebody. I never meant to. I wanted to help that woman but I didn’t know how!”

He let me collapse into his arms as I sobbed. “It’s alright, love.” He tried to soothe me. “You killed a very bad person, and possibly saved another life tonight. We’ll be more careful for a while, but you have to know that you are doing so much better than any of us did, as newborns.” He tried to smile. 

“This is what Jasper feels like. I feel bad for not understanding what he was going through before. I’m so sorry.” I owed him a thousand apologies. 

“Jasper is getting a lot better, and you will too. Think about it! You’ve only been a vampire for a few months! When you have an eternity to look forward to, that’s absolutely no time at all. Things will get better.” He assured me. “Let’s go home?”

As we ran, I felt the human blood giving me a strength that I had never felt before. It ran through me and I knew that my eyes were back to scarlet red. When we approached the house, I didn’t want everyone to know right away. I needed Carlisle, my source of calmness and wisdom, and now I needed that more than ever. Luckily, I could see Carlisle outside on the balcony of the second floor, alone. As Edward walked through the front door, I jumped up to where Carlisle was standing, with my back to him. 

“Bella? Are you alright?” He put a hand on my shoulder but I pushed it away. 

“I have to tell you something. Something awful happened tonight. And I’m not ready for everybody to know.” I was still turned away from him.

He waited patiently as I slowly turned around to look him in the eyes. 

Carlisle was silent for a moment as he studied my blood red eyes. For a second, I was grateful that I didn’t have to say it out loud. “It’s okay, sweetheart. We’ve all been there. As long as you covered your tracks, we’ll be okay. I know it’s hard to accept, but in the grand scheme of things, given who we are, this is not a big deal.”

I struggled to wrap my mind around that. “I’m really sorry. I wanted so much to do this perfectly.” There weren’t words for my own disappointment in myself, and he understood. 

“Can I ask how many?” He said cautiously. 

I stared at him, shocked. What did he think of me? “Just one.” I said. 

He laughed out loud. “You had me scared that you had become a serial killer. Goodness, Bella. A vampire that’s killed just one person?” He smiled at me. “You are going to be just fine.”


	6. Chapter 6

“The wedding will be tomorrow.” Alice informed me. 

“Tomorrow?” I hadn’t planned hardly anything for my own wedding, and truthfully, I was so settled into my vampire life, that it almost seemed unnecessary now. However, Alice wanted to plan a party and Edward wanted traditional, so with the promise that it would just be us, and nothing too elaborate, I agreed. 

Alice did not want my help with anything, and that didn’t bother me. I was not allowed to see my dress, the decorations, the rings, or hear her playlist ahead of time. 

“I want every reaction to be genuine. You’ll love it. You just have to trust me.” She paused for a moment. “Oh my gosh, you do love it! I’ve just seen it. Incredible. You’re going to be the most beautiful bride!” She gushed. 

“Hey, so listen.” Emmett snuck up behind me, carrying a laptop. “I’m gonna officiate your wedding. I just paid $20 to get ordained on this website, so you can’t say no, kay?”

“Oh, that’s really sweet of you, but we weren’t planning on having anyone officiate anything. Edward and I were just going to say our vows to each other, and you’ll all witness, so, I think we’re good.” I knew that this made no difference to Emmett.

He held up his hand to stop me. “Nuh uh. I already know what I’m going to say.” He turned. “Alice! Tell her it will be great.” 

Her eyes narrowed as she studied him, lips pursed. “Fine. But don’t change your mind before tomorrow. I don’t need any of that uncertainty.” She snapped. 

***  
Tomorrow had arrived. I was getting married today. I stood outside and watched the sunrise. I didn’t like to hide from the sun when humans were around. Feeling the first bits of warmth and seeing the smallest glints of sparkle on my skin as the sun came up over the horizon had become my favorite part of the day. It calmed my wedding nerves. 

Jasper came outside to see me. “Alice is kicking you out while she decorates here. Do you want to go for a run?” 

“She didn’t want your help?” I teased.

“No, it’s her way or the highway with things like this. It’s best to just let her be, rather than try to make sense of her plans. Let’s go.” And with that, he took off, and I was right on his tail. 

Along the way, he tried to distract me by regaling me with random history facts, both things he had seen and things that came long before. He confided in me that he had wanted to be a teacher for some time now, but didn’t trust himself enough around humans. 

“You know, Bella. You’ve changed the way I see humans, though. I always thought that I was better than them, they were just something to eat. I didn’t care what they thought of me. But seeing how Edward cared for you, even back when you were human, I had never seen anything like that before. I didn’t know that we could co-exist. I want to teach.” He explained. 

“Jasper! That’s amazing! You would be such a great teacher. You’ve got passion. And good stories, and a way of connecting with people. You have to do it, if that’s really what you want.” I urged him.

“That’s kind of you. Maybe I will, this year.” He paused. “And, I never formally apologized for your birthday. I know how much pain I caused you from that. Both directly and indirectly. I think about how different things might be now, if that hadn’t happened.” His eyes were sincere.

“Thank you, Jazz, I really appreciate that. Of course I forgave you a long time ago. It wasn’t your fault. I was such a klutz, and I knew I should have been more careful. And truthfully, now that I’m finally one of you, I think things would be about the same now, with or without that happening. Let’s just put it behind us.” 

He nodded, and gestured ahead. I caught the scent too. Food. “Let’s get a quick snack and head back?”

My eyes locked on a target, and I jumped.

***  
Alice painstakingly brushed my hair, not a strand out of place. Esme and Rosalie were already dressed by the time we returned. The boys were getting ready in another room. Alice had forbidden me from seeing Edward before the wedding, but I was anxious to get on with it. 

Finally, once she was satisfied with my updo, I was permitted to see the dress. Alice opened the closet door with a flourish. I gasped, I really did love it, but I also wanted to put on a little bit of a show for Alice. I could see that it was long sleeved, very sparkly, and had a full tulle skirt. I really did love it. 

As Rosalie laced me up, Alice presented me with the shoes. She knew I didn’t want to be all in white, so she opened the box for me to see blood red pumps. They were striking against the white dress and my fair skin. “They’re perfect!” 

Alice made one final round to make sure everyone was presentable. Once she was satisfied, I heard her call, “Places, everyone!” Everyone went downstairs to whatever she had set up outside, and I realized I didn’t know where my mark was. Shit. 

Carlisle came out of the next room to offer me his arm. “I’m sorry your father couldn’t be here for this. But it would be my honor to walk you down the aisle.” He said formally. He looked like a product of another era, black coat tails and white gloves. I gladly took his arm and he escorted me down the stairs. 

“You know,” he said softly. “I was so scared for so long that Edward would always be alone. I wanted for him to find somebody so badly. I was angry at myself at first for trying to force Rosalie on him. But now I am overjoyed that he has found you.” 

“I’m happy I found him too. I never knew what my future would hold, but never in a million years would I have guessed this.” I wanted to explode with happiness. 

He paused at the back door to open it for me with a flourish. The backyard had been transformed into a canopy of fairy lights, sparkling as the sun went down. Alice, Esme, and Rose all held a bouquet of purple and red flowers, and Edward had a matching red rose for a boutonniere. Jasper stood at his side, looking unusually handsome. Behind them, Emmett stood waiting for me to arrive. 

When we reached the front of the aisle, Edward reached for my hand, and Emmett started his speech.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join Edward and Bella in a very un-holy matrimony, for some reason. Despite Bella already having joined us in this eternal life, Edward still insisted on silly human traditions.” The smile on his face told me he had been practicing this.

Jasper stifled a laugh, and Esme shot a stern glance at Emmett before he continued. 

“But in all seriousness, I’m so grateful to have Bella as a sister. We’ve come a long way from that day in biology.” Edward grimaced. “Now that we are sure that nobody will get eaten, we can move on to the vows.”

Edward gazed into my eyes. I wanted to melt into him and never return. We were one, and I had never felt closer to him.

“Do you both promise to love each other, to have and to hold, in sickn- well probably not sickness, but you know, health and more health-” At this point, I saw Carlisle look up at the sky as if asking for patience to deal with this nonsense. “For richer or for poorer, also, probably don’t need to worry about the poorer part- until the sun explodes into a supernova because that’s probably when we’re going to die?”

I initially thought that Edward would be upset at Emmett’s less than traditional take on the vows, but it wouldn’t really be a Cullen wedding any other way. He smiled widely and said “I do.”

“I do too!” I was barely holding back giggles at this point. 

Emmett gave us the rings to put on each other, and then proclaimed, “by the power vested in me, by both getmarriedquick.com and my man Carlisle here who made us all super awesome, you may kiss the bride!” 

As Edward kissed me, Emmett turned for a dramatic bow to our little audience, who responded with both laughter and incredulous sighs. They cheered for us, as we made our way to our little dance floor, for our first dance. A Thousand Years by Christina Perri began right on cue. Life had never been more perfect.


	7. Chapter 7

“Everyone come downstairs!” We heard Carlisle’s voice call. Only a few weeks had passed since the wedding, and it appeared that we were already onto our next adventure. 

We found him in the kitchen, one arm around Esme, grinning from ear to ear. “Alright, I’ve got a big surprise.” He started. Alice’s eyes immediately glossed over, lost in a vision. Edward stared at Alice intently, not wanting to miss what she saw. Of course this did not escape Carlisle’s sight. “Please! I want this to actually be a surprise! Alice, focus on me, you’ll find out what it is soon enough. And Edward! I’m not sure how much you saw, but please don’t ruin it for everybody else.” Edward smirked and glanced at Alice. They both smiled at each other. They ruined all the fun. 

“Pack your bags, everyone. We’re going on a trip. We’re celebrating Edward and Bella’s honeymoon, and mine and Esme’s hundredth anniversary. I’ve got a special location picked out. Pack your bags, and get ready to go to the airport.” He instructed. 

Forged ID and passport in hand, we piled into the Mercedes and the Jeep. I was nervous about how this would work. We didn’t exist in any of the citizenship databases as far as I knew. Would we get caught? Jasper sensed my fears, and said “We exist when I want us to exist. It’s very convenient.” He had become good at hacking the government’s systems as technology improved. He constantly broke in and updated our information so that our ages made sense, updated our citizenships as we moved around, and occasionally removed us from the system entirely for eras when we decided to live more isolated from humans. It was a miracle that nobody caught on. 

As we walked through the airport, we got the usual stares as humans watched us glide through the terminal. I remembered now why we rarely traveled together. In front of us, Esme stumbled just slightly, reminding us to blend in. I tried to make my steps more uneven. I made a conscious effort to blink more often, but it didn’t make much of a difference. Every human eye couldn’t look away. At the gate, beautiful Rosalie loved the attention. She pulled down her bun to let her long blonde fair fall into perfect curls, her eyes flirted with anyone who dared smile back at her. But then, the Emmett gun show would suddenly appear in front of her, before any human could get too close. It was a little game they played, as if we weren’t already irresistible enough. But of course, the rest of us would be lying if we didn’t confess that we did the same thing from time to time. Humans were just too much fun to toy with. 

The flights were rather uneventful, the first one landed in Miami, where we had to dance around the sunlight shining through the glass terminal. Carlisle quickly ushered us away from the windows towards our next flight. I glanced at the screen. 

“Rio de Janeiro?” I asked. “Carlisle, where are you taking us?”

His eyes twinkled. “All in good time.” Alice and Edward both made motions to zip their lips, sworn to secrecy. 

The flight was a long one, cursed with humans frequently getting up to use the restroom, get snacks, and tend to their screaming children. Insignificant human problems. Carlisle and Esme disliked buying first class seats for us, because the flight attendants would expect a lot of eating and drinking and sleeping from first class customers - things that we did not enjoy feigning. In the economy seats, it was easier for us to disappear.

***  
The hustle and bustle of the Rio streets was invigorating. There were so many new people, new smells, and new experiences. If I were human, I could imagine being overwhelmed by everything going on. As an immortal, I delighted in being able to enjoy every detail. The Carnaval music and dancing was beautiful, a rainbow of colors and movement decorated the streets. It was intoxicating. 

We spent several hours exploring the shops and listening to the music. I walked arm in arm with Alice, as she dragged me from one vendor to the next. She delighted in the little trinkets and artwork, her eyes wide with excitement at every purchase. She was so easy to please. 

We walked past a bar and I noticed Emmett and Jasper arm wrestling at one of the tables. Several muscular men had placed bets and wanted to fight the winner. As Emmett smashed Jasper’s hand through the table, one of the largest men sized up Emmett, thinking he had found an equal opponent. Alice’s hand tensed on mine, telling me that this could not end well. I sprinted over to the boys.

“Emmett, hun, do you really think that’s a good idea?” I smiled at him. “That guy? He’s not really a worthy opponent.” Jasper laughed. 

“Yeah, I bet even Bella here could take on this guy.” Jasper egged me on. Not what I had anticipated, but I didn’t see why not. 

I turned towards the man. “I’ll tell you what. If you can beat me, I’ll let you wrestle with Emmett here.” I sat down at the table and offered my hand. The man, bewildered, fell for it. 

WIthin seconds, I had easily defeated him, smashing his hand down on the bar, using all of my restraint to stop myself from breaking his arm. His eyes widened in shock. “You know, you’re really not as strong as you look.” I winked at him, his friends speechless. 

Emmett and Jasper cheered, and laughed maniacally. The commotion summoned the rest of the family, I felt their eyes on us from a distance. From fifty feet away, I heard Esme mutter something about keeping a low profile, but even she couldn’t help but crack a smile.

We regrouped at the end of the street, Carlisle leading the way towards a marina. He spoke low and fast so that the humans wouldn’t hear. “Once we get to our destination, you won’t have to hide anymore, but can you please behave for just a little while longer?” Emmett stood at attention, hand in a salute in response. 

Rosalie draped her arm around Emmett, her body pressed up against him sensually, preventing any further antics between him and Jasper. “Just wait until I get you alone.” She breathed, Emmett’s fingers danced down the side of her body as we continued to walk down the shore, too quick and subtle for any human to notice. 

Edward pulled me in close, mirroring Emmett’s motions. “I’m so glad I have you now.” He whispered to me. “They were unbearable before I had you.” I tilted my chin up for a kiss and he gladly complied. 

Carlisle’s voice from up ahead snapped us back to reality. “All aboard everyone! We’re just a short ride away from our final destination.” 

We piled onto the speed boat, the cool evening air felt so good against my skin. Even the air tasted different here. It hit me over and over again how endless our eternity would be. We would always have the freedom to do anything, and everything. I thought about how lucky I was that Edward let me into his world, after he was so reluctant to open up, if anything should go wrong. The risks we took for each other were insane, looking back at what we had been through, but in this moment of zen, above the open water, surrounded by the peacefulness of nature, and this perfect chaotic family, my family, I knew I was where I was meant to be. 

In the distance I could see an island blossom up from over the horizon. I could see a home perched on the beach, waves crashing against the shore. The house was huge, wide open, full of classic Cullen architecture. Carlisle carefully steered the boat up to the dock, and shut off the engine. 

With Esme’s hand on his arm, Carlisle led her up to the beach, as a proper gentleman from another lifetime would. The rest of us followed. 

“Welcome to Isle Esme.” With his free hand he gestured around him. The lights around the house came to life, illuminating the flowers that adorned the landscape, the moon beaming through the trees. 

Esme gasped. “Oh, Carlisle, it’s beautiful! You shouldn’t have! But I’m so glad you did. I love it here.” She whirled around, taking it all in. 

I smiled. Carlisle’s love was contagious, he seemed thrilled with himself that he was able to keep the surprise from her. Edward and I started to wander away, toes in the sand, looking up at the stars. 

“I wanted to do something special for you, my angel.” Carlisle’s arms wrapped around Esme, nuzzling in her neck. “Happy 100th anniversary.” He lifted her up so her legs wrapped around his waist, they kissed, and he started to walk towards the house, still carrying Esme, and then they disappeared, the glass door slammed shut behind them. 

Shortly after, the rest of us carried the bags inside to explore the house. It was remarkably similar to the homes in Forks and Vancouver. I always loved the wide open spaces and the glass walls. Edward and I picked out one of the bedrooms. 

“Love, do you want to go swimming?” Edward asked. 

“Now? It’s the middle of the night, and…” I trailed off, realizing that they were simple human excuses and I suddenly wanted to go swimming more than anything.

He nodded eagerly. “Get changed. You’ve never been swimming since you’ve been human. You’ll love it.”

I quickly slipped on my favorite swimsuit, as Rose and Emmett loudly bounded through the bedroom door next to us. 

“Let’s get out of here.” He laughed. 

We made our way back towards the beach, the water was perfectly clear and cool. Edward dove in, and didn’t resurface. I jumped in, and saw him several hundred feet below, exploring the reefs. The sea life was beautiful, every color of fish surrounded us, in this underwater paradise. 

***  
The days on the island were fun-filled with games and relaxing on the beach. Board games were brutal, when you had the mental capacity to anticipate every possible outcome, but nobody would play against Alice or Edward. They usually were forced to play each other, with Alice seeing the result, and Edward seeing the result in her mind. Alice would normally play out the entire game in her head before either of them had moved a single piece, and it would be over before it started. 

Outside, we had tried to play beach volleyball, and soccer, but the balls kept popping. Flimsy human toys. Esme had the idea to bring a bowling ball to the volleyball court. I briefly wondered where she had gotten it from, but as she tried to spike it towards Carlisle, she hit it too hard, and it shattered like glass over her head. 

Not long after that, Jasper and Emmett played soccer on the beach, and Jazz kicked the ball so hard, it flew 100 yards into the ocean, causing Emmett to jump into the sea and find it like an oversized golden retriever, causing them to change the rules of the game again.


	8. Chapter 8

Twenty years later . . .

Time had gone by, and as the years passed, I felt more and more like a natural born Cullen. I was no longer the weird human girl that they had taken under their wings. It was more like I had always been here, just as I had seen the rest of the family at first. It was an unusual experience when my human memories began to fade. I didn’t even notice it at first, until one day Edward mentioned in passing something that had happened when we were in high school together, and it suddenly struck me that I couldn’t recall the details. It was fuzzy and faded, as if I was trying to remember a story that happened in someone else’s life, but every single moment that had happened since I first opened my blood-red newborn eyes was crystal clear. 

We lived in northern England now, on the outskirts of Manchester. About a decade ago, Carlisle had become one of the most reputable surgeons in Canada, as we bounced around from Vancouver, to Winnipeg, to Calgary. It was becoming harder and harder for him to blend in, as the well-loved doctor moved around the country, fleeing notoriety. So, six years ago, he came home from the hospital one day, panicked that people were beginning to notice him. We fled across the ocean, where he promised to only work at local clinics that didn’t get as much attention. 

After some convincing, Esme and Carlisle agreed to not make us go through school again. I told them about how when I first saw them in Forks, I thought they all looked much older than us high school students anyways. With that decision made, Jasper doctored up new identification for us, with us all claiming to be in our mid twenties. With our new lives, we were free to explore our passions, as long as we stayed under the radar. 

Esme and Jasper both went to work at the local school district, with Esme teaching elementary school, and Jasper taking on high school level history. Emmett volunteered at that same school to coach basketball after school. He had to promise Esme that he wouldn’t show off too much. Rosalie opened a custom car shop, and vowed to be able to fix any issue on any car, better, faster, and cheaper than any competitors. Alice became a fashion designer, submitting designs under a constantly changing pseudonym, so that the companies she worked for would never find out who the fashion genius really was. Edward composed music for film scores and theatrical productions in London, he would spend hours at a time poring over his piano, and beginning to teach himself other instruments as well. I saw a new passion in him that I had never seen before. As for me, I became an editor with a publishing company. I especially loved reviewing fantasy and supernatural stories that humans wrote. It amused me that none of them ever seemed to get close to the truth. If humans only knew about the supernatural creatures that lived among them, blending into their own lives. Everyone had a new happiness within them, and although we were all much busier, it was a good thing that we had plenty of family time together at night while the world slept. 

***  
I heard a knock at my door. “Alice? Come in.” She slipped inside and didn’t say anything at first, her eyes were sad as she studied my face.

“I’ve seen something.” She whispered. “Charlie is sick. It probably won’t be much longer until… I thought you would want to know.” 

“Dad?” I looked down. I hadn’t thought about him in years. I felt so guilty. When I was first turned, I missed him every day. I even went to check on him once. As my human memories of him faded, my thoughts of him disappeared into the blackness. My own father. The thought of the word father caused Carlisle’s face to appear in my mind. He wasn’t my dad persay, but he led us all through this world with wisdom and kindness. He was the one we all turned to when we needed guidance. And yet, my own father was dying, a half a world away. 

I knew what I wanted to do. I pushed past Alice and ran downstairs to find Edward. He lounged on the couch, watching TV with Jasper. 

“Did you hear what Alice saw?” I asked in a rush. 

He nodded. “What do you want to do?” He turned towards me. 

“I want to see him. Now. I want to tell him the truth about us before it’s too late. I owe him some honesty. I’ve put him through hell.” I begged him, I knew it wasn’t the safe idea, but I felt in my heart I had no other choice. Edward winced as I knew he would.

My little proclamation caught Esme and Carlisle’s attention. “Bella, sweetie, you knew you would have to leave him behind when you joined us. It’s not safe for him to know.” Esme pleaded. “And what if he survives this? He’ll have to live with that knowledge for too long.” 

Alice jumped in. “He won’t. It’s now or never, Bella.” No one spoke for a moment. Nobody dared contradict Alice. 

“I’m going to Forks. Today. I’m going to go alone.” I immediately began searching for the next flight out of here. I found a flight that was leaving in one hour, I had to leave now. I hated flying, but it was faster than swimming across the ocean, which I almost considered for a moment. 

“Be careful, Bella. Make sure nobody else is around when you see him. Wait until the very end.” Carlisle cautioned. 

I kissed Edward, breathing in his scent. So sweet and intoxicating like always. “You sure you don’t want me to come with you?” He whispered. 

I shook my head. “I’ll be back before you know it. I love you.”

In a matter of seconds, I was out the door, in my black Audi, flying towards the highway at double the speed limit. 

***  
When I arrived in Forks, it took everything in me not to run through the airport at top speed. I tried to look like a human who was in a hurry to see their loved ones, but based on some of the glances I got, I was not fully successful. I didn’t care. Only Charlie mattered now. Once I was outside, I quickly made sure no humans were looking, and I took off running. Even in the most stressful times, it always felt so freeing to just run. It was exhilarating and energizing. It was nothing like running as a human. I appeared outside of the hospital, not daring to walk through the front doors and ask what room he was in. What if there were some nurses that would recognize me from all those years ago. I hid in the trees behind the building and strained for Charlie’s scent. I was fortunate that I caught his scent that one time when I visited him all those years ago. Otherwise, this would be a lot more difficult.

It only took a moment until I found the scent I was looking for, mixed in with so many unfamiliar ones. My eyes locked on the window that it radiated from. Third floor, sixth window from the north end of the building. The sun was beginning to set, and the parking lot emptied. When the coast was clear, I jumped through the window and noiselessly slid under his bed. I triggered an alarm in the room next door so that the attending nurse would be occupied for at least a few minutes. The noise woke up Charlie. I quietly closed the door to his room and waited for his eyes to open. I barely recognized him, old and gray, and withering away. 

“Hey dad? Can you see me?” I whispered. 

“Bella? Is that you?” His voice came out broken and gravelly. 

“Yeah, I had to see you one last time. I owe you the truth.” I stepped closer, letting him get a good look at me. 

He smiled. “You’re exactly as I remember you. Oh, Bells, I missed you so.” 

I sat down next to him and held his hand. “Do you remember the day I left you? I know it was a long time ago. Do you remember the things that Carlisle told you?”

He nodded. “I’ve thought about it nearly every day of my life.” The words came slowly, one word at a time. He sounded so weak. 

“Remember he told you he would change me into one of them? We’re different from other people. I’m one of them now. And it wasn’t safe to tell you then, but now that… “ I couldn’t say it, but he knew what I meant. “I figured I could tell you now, and nobody else would ever know.”

He closed his eyes. “It’s good to hear your voice.” He breathed slowly. “I’m listening. You can tell me.”

“This is going to sound crazy, dad. Just be ready for that.” I warned.

He cough-laughed quietly. “You still look like you’re 18 years old, Bells.” He opened his eyes. “I also know that Jacob and those boys were wolves, so it can’t be much weirder than that.”

I briefly wondered how Charlie had found out about that, but I brushed that to the side. I guess that would make this a little easier.

“I’m a vampire. The Cullens are all vampires.” It was strange to say the v-word out loud. It came up so rarely in regular conversation. I paused for a moment while he absorbed that information. He seemed to nod, but his eyes were wide.

“I’m not going to hurt you or anyone else, don’t worry. I just wanted you to know what’s become of me. I can tell you about our family, if you’d like.”

“I’m all ears, Bells. I’ve lived a boring simple life, so I would love to hear about yours.” He seemed to relax a bit.

My voice seemed to soothe him, so I told him our whole story.

“Vampires are immortal. We are frozen at the age we become a vampire, and so we will be just like this, forever. That’s why we have to move around a lot, so people don’t notice that we aren’t aging. You remember the Cullens only stayed in Forks for a couple of years. We live in Manchester, England now.”

“That must be lovely.” I could tell it was tiring for him to speak more than a few words, so I let myself ramble. It felt so good to let out all of our secrets. I mentally noted that it would probably never happen again, so I took pleasure in telling our story.

“Carlisle was born in 1640 in England. He was attacked by a rogue vampire, and he became one of us completely alone. He was nomadic for nearly 300 years. In 1917, he was working as a doctor in Chicago, during the Spanish flu. He found Edward in the hospital, very ill. His parents had already died, so he was completely alone. He changed Edward into a vampire so that he would have a companion. Becoming one of us cures any illnesses or injuries, so he was immediately healthy again.”

“Shortly after that, he found Esme in the hospital. She was injured, and Carlisle had felt a connection to her when they had met years earlier, so he changed her as well.” I intentionally left out Esme’s awful human life. I wanted to make this as much of a happy story for Charlie as possible. 

“When we find our partner in this life, it’s called a mate. The bond between mates is very very powerful, it’s a strength that will never be broken, and the pair will be together until the end of time. About a decade later, Carlisle found Rosalie, and changed her in the hopes that she would be a mate for Edward, but they were not meant to be.”

Charlie tried to laugh at that. “I remember her.”

“She eventually found Emmett, and asked Carlisle to change him for her, so she had found her mate. In the 1950s, Alice and Jasper, who were already vampires at the time, found the four of them, and joined their family, again leaving Edward as the odd one out. Jasper has been around a long time. Can you believe that he fought in the Civil War?” I asked, making sure that Charlie was still with me.

He shook his head, I knew he was still reeling from the concept of immortality. His breathing was slowly becoming more ragged. I squeezed his hand tighter. “Tell me what happened next.” He whispered so softly that if I didn’t have vampire hearing, I wouldn’t have heard him.

“The seven of them lived together for another 60 years, moving around from city to city, blending into human life as much as they could, until they moved to Forks and found me. You know what happened then. Once I found out the truth about who they were, I made the decision that I wanted to become one of them, and they graciously accepted me as the missing piece to their family. Shortly after I left Forks, Carlisle changed me into this, and we’ve all been together ever since.”

I watched the heart rate monitor slow, the end was near, his breathing was labored and very weak.

“I love you, dad. So much.” I wish I had the ability to cry. My body shook and my eyes squeezed shut. He touched my hand. “I want you to know that I’m really happy with them, dad. They take such good care of me, we all have so much love for each other, and we’ll be really happy together, forever.” His lips twitched upward in a small smile. “You don’t have to worry about me anymore. It’s okay to let go.”

I sat with him for his last moments, watching his eyes fall shut one last time. I kissed his forehead, and pulled away as he took his last breath. The heart rate monitor flatlined, and I heard a nurse’s frantic footsteps running towards the room. I took one last look at my father’s face, jumped out the window, and disappeared into the wilderness. 

**EPILOGUE**

I would be forever grateful for those last few moments that I got to spend with Charlie. Years passed, and nearly all of my human memories had faded into the abyss. When I had first met the Cullens, it was hard for me to imagine any of them as humans, especially the psychic Alice. Now, I felt the same way about myself. That clumsy awkward girl from Phoenix had completely faded away. I couldn’t remember the last time I introduced myself as Bella Swan. 

We had lived in the Northern English countryside for a long time now, our home completely hidden to humans, surrounded by miles of wilderness. We had all the room we could ever need to hunt and run free. We had all found our passions and our creative outlets. Carlisle would always be the best doctor there ever was, and the rest of us were writers, designers, teachers, and creators. 

Edward and I together were stronger than ever. It had taken some time, but he no longer resented Carlisle for giving me this life and stealing away my soul. It was plain to see that I had never been happier. 

Just behind the house, Esme had planted a beautiful meadow of flowers where Edward and I laid in the morning to watch the sunrise. The first rays of sunshine began to glow and the sparkles began to dance across his face. He reached for me and I eagerly jumped into his arms as he pressed his lips to mine.

“Forever.”


End file.
